Automatic train control.



Patented June 8, 1915.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

Vi LTDTESSES:

G. KENNEY.

AUTOMATIC TRAIN CONTROL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.24,1914.

1 l 42, 1 78. Patented June 8, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GERALD KENNEY, 01' SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, AB BIGNOB OF TWENTY-FOUR AND ONE-HALF ONE-HUNDBEDTHS '10 ALBERT H. HERBERT AND TWENTY-FOUR AND ONE-HALF ONE-HUNDBEDTHS TO JOHN C. NEWLANDS, 01' SAN FRANCISCO,

camoma.

AU'IOKATIC rum common.

s ecification of Letters 2mm.

Patented June 8, 1915.

Appllcation'fllcd November 24, 1914. Serial 1T0. 878,712.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, GERALD KENNEY, a

citizen of the United States, .residing in the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Im rovements in Automatic Train Control, 0 which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an automatic train control.

In operating trains over certain lines it is well known that one or more despatchers are employed for each division of the line. These despatchers do not only know the position and direction of travel of every train within their division, but it is also their duty to give every engineer and conductor an order which, when followed, should safely convey the train to the next stop or despatchers division. Such orders generally contain directions for the train to stop at certain stations or sidings to permit the passage of another train, or for other purposes. These despatches are sometimes disregarded through carelessness, misunderstanding, or otherwise, generally causing a wreck, derailment of the train or like acci dent, causing an unnecessary destruction of life and rolling stock.

' It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide means for automatically bringing the train to a stop when a certain predetermined siding or destination is reached.

Further objects will hereinafter appear.

The invention consists of the parts and the construction and combination of parts as hereinafter more fully. described and claimed, having reference to the accompanyin drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a central longitudinal section through the device. Fig. 2 is a view of a portion of the registering chart used in connection with the device. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the carriage. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the chart roll feeding mechanism. Fig. 5 is a perspective of the chart Figl'l, showing the carriage in its innermost position. Fig. 7 is a cross section on line 7-7, Fig 6. Fi 8 is a cross section on line 8-8, ig. 6. 9 is a cross section pencil. Fig. 6 is a view similar to online99,Fi 6. Fi .10isa rs ective of the nut 17. g g p6 p More particularly described A indicates a rectangular shaped casing through which extends longitudinally a worm feed shaft 2 and a stationary guide rod 3. Slidably mounted interior of the casing is a carriage 4, through which the guide rod and worm shaft extend, said worm havin the function of feeding the carriage in t c direction of arrow at. The worm shaft is directly connected with and driven by one of the idle wheels of the locomotive or tender by means of any suitable connection, or, as here shown, by a flexible shaft 5 secured, as at 6, to a countershaft 7 journaled, as at 8, in the upper rear end of the casin The speed transmitted to the worm sha is, however, considerably reduced through the gear train generally indicated at 9; the ratio of reduct1on being such, for instance, that the carriage will travel a quarter of an inch to one mile of travel of the train.

Projecting through a slot 10, in the casing, in the path-of travel of carria 4 is a lever 11 which is not only adapted to operate the train brake valve 12, when rocked by the carriage, but which is also adapted to close a circuit through an electric alarm bell 13, an extension 14 on the lever being adapted to close said circuit by forming a connection between a pair of contacts 1515.

The carriage, as before stated, is fed in the direction of arrow a by means of the worm shaft. Means have, however, been provided for releasing the carriage with relation to the worm shaft and also for moving the carriage in a direction opposite to arrow a. This is accom lished in the following manner: Slidably mounted in a guideway 16, formed in the carriage, is a nut 17 which is adapted to be raised or lowered with relation to the worm shaft, being normally held in engagement with the worm by a spring 18. Nut 17 is rovided with a centre ly isposed slot, as indicated at 19, and is held in the guideway by a plate 20, which in turn is slotted, as at 21.

Adapted to be inserted through a key-way 22, formed in the front end of the casing, is a key 23, hereinafter to be known as the despatchers key. The front end of this key is cutout, as at 24, to form a stop 25, and the opposite edge of the key is beveled, as at 26, to form a cam face. The key-way 22 is so positioned as to be in direct alinement with slots 19 and 21 in the carriage, and the insertion of key 23 through slot 22 will thus permit the forward end of the key to enter slots 21 and 19. Forcing the key inwardly will bring the cam surface 26' into engagement with the upper edge of slot 19 in the nut and will consequently lift the nut in an upward direction against the tension of spring 18. This will release the carriage with relation to the worm shaft 2 and will permit the despatcher to force the carriage in an inward direction, as indicated by the arrow 2), Fig. 6. The inward movement of the carriage is limited by a stop collar 27 which is adapted to be adjustably' secured upon the key. For instance, referring to Fig. 1, if it is desired to have the train stop at a siding which is sixteen miles distant, it will only be necessary to set the stop collar 27 at a point marked 16 on the key. The inward movement of the carriage is thus limited by the stop collar. The carriage is then looked in this position by means of a set-screw 28, secured on the lower side of the carriage and projecting through a slot 29 formed in the bottom of the casing. Key 23 may then be withdrawn, permitting nutl'i to move back into engagement with the worm shaft. The nut will thus lock the carriage with relation to the worm shaft and set-screw 28 may be released. The locomotive may then be started on its journey and the forward movement of same is transmitted through one of the idle Wheels and connection 5, with connected reducing gearing 9, to revolve the worm shaft. The carriage will thus be slowly moved toward the front end of the casing in the direction of arrow a and will, as before stated, move approximately a quarter of an inch to every mile of travel of the train. The carriage will thus have moved back to its innermost position indicated in Fig. 6 by the time the train has traveled sixteen miles or reached its destination. The train will here be automatically stopped, as the carriage will have engaged with the lever 11 which controls the air brake 12. The train is thus prevented from running beyond its destination and acei-' dents are avoided. The key proper is graduated from 0 to 16, as indicated in Flg. 1, and each graduation may represent one mile. The upper surface of the key is provided with ratchet teeth 30 and there are four such teeth for each mile graduation. Mounted on the stop collar 27 is a spring-actuated .pawl 31 which is normally adapted to be held in engagement with the ratchet teeth. This pawl locks the stop collar upon the key and provides a means for adjustably securnit-arm ing same thereon. The provision of four ratchet teeth for each main mileage graduation permits the collar'to be set for a distance, as six and three-quarters miles, or, n other words, permits the collar to be set in a position where the carriage can only be moved in so that its rearward travel will correspond to six and three-quarters miles travel of the train. Of course, ll wish it understood that the key may he graduated for any desired number of miles and that the spacing of said graduations, together with the travel of the carriage, may be such as local conditions may require. The first movement of lever 11, when engaged by the carriage as this has just about reached the limit of its forward movement, will cause extension 14 to close the electric circuit through the alarm 13. This alarm, in the form of an electric bell, will immediately indicate to the engineer that the destination has just about been reached and that the brake valve is just about to be set. The engineer will then insert his own key and move the carriage inwardly a little distance or just sufficiently far to prevent it from setting the air-brake; the carriage being locked in this position by the screw 28. The engineer is thus automatically warned of the approaching destination and is more likely to stop the train at the station or siding previously determined by the despatcher. If the engineer, through sickness or accident, should happen to be in such a condition that he could not hear the alarm everything will be automatically accomplished by the complete return movement .of the carriage. The train will then be stopped without attention of any kind from the engineer.

Each engineer is provided with what will be termed an engineers key This key is similar in construction to that shown in Figs. 1 and 2, with the exception that the stop collar 27 and ratchet teeth 30 have been eliminated. The engineer uses this key for two purposes; first, for preventing the air brake from being set by lever 11 when the station or siding is just about to be reached, which is indicated by the ringing of an alarm bell; and, second, to free thenut with relation to the worm shaft when backin up, switching, or the like. The reducing othe speed from the idle wheel on the locomotive tender, through the gearing indicated at 9 and the worm shaft 2, may be very closely timed so that the carriage will set the air I brake at just about the same time that the ing the siding, or possibly after reaching same. The engineer is, therefore, provided with, his key with which he can force the carriage back and lock it while the train is being slowed-down and brought to its destination or siding.

If at any intermediate oint on the line of travel it is necessary or the engine to stop and switch the cars around on sidings, or for other purposes, it is desirable to release the carriage with relation to the worm shaft and lock it until the train is again ready to proceed on its regular run. This is accomplished by first locking the carriage by means of screw 28 and then inserting the engineers key until it passes through slot 21 and lifts the nut out of engagement with the worm shaft. The moment the train is through switching and is again in position to proceed on its journey, it is only necessary to withdraw the key and release screw 28. The nut will thus drop backinto engagement with the worm and shaft and forward movement of the locomotive or train will again be transmitted, as previously described, to move the carriage.

Means have also been provided for record ing the distance traveled by the locomotive and the number of stops made by same between the starting point and the point of destination. This is accomplished by providing a paper roll 33, which is mounted upon a reel 34 insertible between a socket 35 carried in a bearing 36 and turned by a ratchet 37 and a pawl hereinafter to be described; the other end of the reel being supported by a bearing 38 and a spring-actuated holder 39 of the usual construction. Pivotally mounted upon the carriage, as at 40, is a spring-actuated marker or pencil 41 which is adapted to engage and mark a line upon the recording sheet or paper carried by the reel. Pivotally mounted, as at 42, in the forward end of the casing is an arm 43 which is normally held in the position indicated in Fig. 7 by a downwardly pr.- jecting stop 44. The forward end of this lever extends in front of the key-way 22 and is adapted to be engaged by the cam surface 26 when the key 23 is inserted. The engagement of the lever 43 with the cam surface 26 causes it to be lifted in the direction of arrow a, Fig. 4, and this upward movement of the lever is transmitted through a pawl 45 to turn ratchet wheel 37 a part of a revolution.

The operation of the recording sheet will be as follows: Carriage 4, after the end of a run, will most likely assume the position indicated in Fig. 6. lVlien the train is made up and ready to start 1t is the despatchers duty to set stop collar 27 on his key and hand it to the engineer. The engineer will then insert it through the keyway and force the carriage inwardly, as previously described. He will then lock the carriage by means of screw 28 and withdraw the key and Referring to Fig. 2, it will be seen that,

the recording sheet is divided into sixteen miles from 1 to 16, as indicated by the dotted lines. The horizontal lines indicated on said sheet show a record of the movements of the train, the number of stops and the distance traveled. For instance, line 46 indicates that the carriage was moved inwardly twelve miles and that the train traveled without any stop or switching until if reached its destination. The insertion of the key to again move the carriage inwardly for the purpose of setting same when making a new run causes the cam to rock lever 43; this movement being transmitted through pawl 45 to turn the ratchet, with connected reel and recording sheet, a partial revolution. This turning movement takes place at the time the key is inserted and before the carriage is engaged by the key and moved inwardly. The turning movement of the reel is indicated by a line 47. The moment the key engages with the carriage and forces same inwardly the marker will again make a line such as is indicated at 48. This line indicates that the carriage has been set for a distance of sixteen miles, and the-return movement of the carriage shows that the engineer inserted his key twice, as indicated at 49 and 50, for the purpose of locking the carriage when switching at some point along the line or for other purposes. A complete record of the operation of the train controlling device, together with the mileage traveled by the train, is thus secured and the recording sheet as it becomes unrolled from the reel may be directed into a casing formed on the side of the main casing and looked, as at 51, so that only persons in authority may open it and secure the record.

One side of the carriage is necessarily cut away, as indicated at 53, to permit it to pass the reel upon which the recording sheet is mounted, and a spring 54, surrounding guide rod 3 and interposed between the carriage and the inner end of the rod support, is provided for the purpose of preventing the carriage from being moved inwardly any farther than the adjustment of the set collar 27 on the key permits. For instance, it might be possible, if spring 54 had not been provided, to shove the key in with sufficient force to give the carriage sufficient momentum to travel rearwardly farther than was actually intended by the adjustment of collar 27 on the despatchers key. Of course this would only happen by carelessness, but

Ill-5 spring 54 will preilent any such accident, as it will always hold the carriage when free against the key or to its normal forward position in engagement with lever 8, as shown in Fig. 6. i i

The materials and finish of the several parts of the automatic train control are such as the experience and judgment of the manufacturer may dictate.

I wish it understood that various changes in form, proportions and minor details of construction may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims and that I do'not wish to limit myself to the specific design and construction here shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is-- 1. An automatic train control comprising a carriage, means for moving said carriage at a reduced speed ratio in unison with the travel of the train, and means operated by the carriage for setting the brakes on the train, said means including a casing having.

a slot therein, a lever projecting through said slot into the path of travel of the carriage, and a train air brake controlling valve actuated by the movement of the lever.

2. An automatic train control comprising a carriage, means for moving said carriage at a reduced speed ratio in unison with the travel of the train, means operated, by the carriage for setting the brakes on the train, and means for regulating the movement of the carriage so that the brakes may be set at any predetermined point, said means including a key, a casing having a keyway through which said key is insertible, a collar on the key adjustable to limit the movement of said key, and a cam on the key adapted to disengage the carriage moving means at a predetermined point.

3. An automatic train control comprising in combination, a casing, a carriage in said casing, a worm shaft extending longitudinally through the casing, means for driving said shaft from one ofthe wheels of the train, said shaft adapted to feed the carriage in one direction, and means operated by the carriage for setting the brakes on the train, said means including a lever mounted on the stem of the train air-brake controlling valve and projecting through the side of the easing into the path of travel of the carriage and movable thereby to open the air valve.

4. An automatic train control comprising, in combination, a casing, a carriage in said casing, a worm shaft extending longitudi nally through the casing, means for driving said shaft from one of the wheels of the train, a nut on the carriage engageable with the Worm shaft to advance the carriage in one direction, means for releasing the nut from the worm shaft, means for moving the carriage in an opposite direction to that transmitted by the worm shaft, means for regulating the length of said movement, said means including a key insertible through a slot in the end of the casing having a cam at the end to engage and release the nut from the worm shaft, a collar with means to adjust it longitudinally upon the key, and means operated by the carriage for setting the train brakes.

5. An automatic train control comprising in combination, a casing, a carriage in said casing, a worm shaft extending longitudinally through the casing, means for driving said shaft from one of the wheels of the train, a nut on the carriage engageable with the worm shaft to feed the carriage in one direction, a key insertible through a keyway in the casing, a cam on the end of the key engageable with the nut to raise same out of engagement with the worm shaft to permit the carriage to be moved by means of the key in a direction opposite to that transmitted by the worm shaft, an adjustable stop on the key to limit the distance the carriage is moved, and means operated by the carriage for setting the train brakes.

6. An automatic train control comprising a carriage, means for moving said carriage at a reduced speed ratio in unison with the travel of the train, and means operated by the carriage for giving an alarm when the train and carriage have traveled a previously-determined distance, said means including a slotted casing, and a lever, one end of which projects through the side of the easing into the path of travel of the carv Way in the casing, a cam on the end of the key engageable with the nut to raise same out of engagement with the worm shaft to permit the carriage to bemoved by means of the key in a direction opposite to that transmitted by the worm shaft, an adjustable stop on the key to limit the distance the carriage is moved, and a pivotally mounted lever adapted to be rocked by the carriage, said lever when rocked adapted to close an electric alarm circuit and also adapted to open or close the train brake valve.

8. An automatic train control comprising in combination, a casing, a carriage in said casing, a worm shaft extending longitudinally through the casing, means for driving said shaft from one of the wheels of the train, a nut on the carriage-engageable with the worm shaft to feed the carria in one direction, a key insertible throug a keyway in the casing, a cam on the end of the key engageable with the nut to raise same out of engagement with the worm shaft to permit the 'carria e to be moved by means of the key in a ireetion opposite to that transmitted by the worm shaft, an adjustable'stop on the key to limit the distance the carriage is moved, means operated by the carriage for setting the train brakes, a recording sheet in the casing, a pencil on the carriage adapted to mark the movements of the carriage on the recording sheet, and means for moving the recordin sheet.

9. An automatic train contro comprising in combination, a casing, a carria e in said casing, a worm shaft extending on 'tudinally through the casin means for 'ving said shaft from one o the wheels of the train, a nut on the carriage engageable with the worm shaft to feed the carnage in one direction, a key insertible through a keyway in the casing, a cam on the end of the key engageable with the nut to raise same out of engagement with the worm shaft to permit the carria e to be moved by means of the key in a 'rection opposite to that transmitted by the worm shaft, an adjustable stop on the key to limit the distance the carriage is moved, means operated by the carriage for setting the train brakes, a reel turnably mounted in the casing, a recording sheet on said reel, means controlled by the key for turning said reel a partial revolution, and a marker on the carriage engageable with said recording sheet.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GERALD KENNEY.

Witnesses: James G. EsTnP, J. A. LORENZEN. 

